The sick smugglers were attempting to cross a frozen Siberian lake with cargo including 867 paws of brown and Asiatic bears and the skins of five critically endangered Amur tigers.

Genitals and tails of deers, dozens of kilos of dried fat, testicles from frogs and bear claws were among the hundreds of other body parts seized by Russia spy organisation FSB as part of a multi-stage operation.

Many of the parts were due to be turned into treatments for impotency and other ailments by China's traditional medicine industry.

Big cat expert Sergey Aramilev - head of the Amur Tiger Centre - said “a major smuggling channel” had been closed down.

He added: "Unfortunately, I can't disclose all the details of Far East customs officers' work because of the ongoing criminal investigation, but I am sure that this story one day will turn into a movie script.

WILL STEWART

HAUL: The total value of the tiger skins, bear claws and other parts was over £1million

Tiger and bear parts discovered in grisly smuggling operation

The huge operation was described as like something ‘out of a movie’

1 / 7

RusGosNews/Siberian Times

The operation was described as like ‘out of a movie’

WILL STEWART

CRUEL: Many endangered bears were killed for these claws

“I am sure that this story one day will turn into a movie script”

Sergey Aramilev

"The poachers had been gathering animal body parts for a long time throughout the whole of the Russian Far East.

"Two tigers were killed not less than three years ago. Two other tigers, very recently. One of them was killed this winter."

Russian customs officials and FSB secret service officers tracked the gang as they crossed the frozen 45km-wide Khanka Lake.

Five suspects are facing poaching and trafficking charges, the haul, believed to be valued around £1million has been seized without being damaged.

An FSB statement said: "Thanks to highly coordination and quick actions, the officers of Far East Customs, FSB State Border Service and Far East regional FSB managed to stop the poachers and prevented damaging the evidence of their crime."